Swimming is said to have positive effects on the human body – a fact that has been proven over the years by scientists and health enthusiasts. Swimming helps tone the body’s muscles but without incurring injuries compared to potential injuries when incorrectly performing land-based exercises.

Your lungs can be strengthened by taking a swim since deep breathing is required to be able to swim beneath the water and not come up for air as much as possible.

Athletes suffering from sports injuries are highly recommended to perform low impact water-based exercises, including swimming, to slowly nurse their body back into good health.

There is one thing on the other hand that you should need to carefully consider – and that is your body’s reaction to the swimming pool chemicals that are added to help keep the pool clean and sanitized for human use.

There have been instances that the frequently used chemical chlorine can cause redness of the skin, difficulty in breathing, and itchiness. This sort of reaction by your body may mean that you are allergic to chlorine. Bromine tablets can be used as an alternative to chlorine, this may help; recurring exposure to something you are allergic to, can cause rashes or skin irritation.

Studies have shown that chlorine-treated pools tend to yield chlorine by-products once chlorine combines with the organic wastes that are introduced by the swimmers themselves. The chlorine by-products are quite toxic and are harmful to humans. There have been cases where the swimmer suddenly feels the start of an asthma attack. Bromine can also have an effect when used at higher than the recommended dosage. Headaches, fatigue, gastrointestinal problems, and skin irritation are signs and symptoms brought about by bromine.

It would be in your best interest to attempt and find an alternative to bromine- or chlorine-based pool chemicals if you own the pool you are swimming in and are starting to exhibit allergic symptoms. Examples of the substitutes to swimming pool chemicals are ultraviolet and ozone technology. If you frequent public swimming pools, be sure to appropriately wash and rinse off the swimming pool chemicals from your skin.

Don’t get me wrong, swimming is even now a healthy form of recreation and there really is no need to worry as long as you take the precautionary steps to maintaining your health.

There have been reported cases of swimmers and swimming pool employees experiencing wheezing, shortness of breath, or asthma. Skin irritation and rashes have also been observed among habitual swimmers. Studies and research (nhs.uk/news/2009/09September and swimming.about.com) were conducted because the number of reported cases was considered significant.

Chlorine was identified as the cause of the problem and that the severity of the asthma attack is dependent on how much chlorine is applied. Hold on! Don’t work yourself into a turmoil instead you should read this article then be the one to decide if there really is a reason to worry.

Chlorine-based pool chemicals are the most frequently used to clean, sanitize, and disinfect public and private swimming pools. Unknown to the general population, however, these chlorine-based pool chemicals can have an undesirable side effect on the human body. Unfortunately, you don’t even have to be actually swimming in the pool to experience the side effects. Just being near a swimming pool treated with chlorine can also give a similar result especially if there is poor ventilation like those for indoor pools.

Chlorine is thought to be the reason but if one wants to be more specific it is actually chlorine that is combined with organic wastes. Toxic chlorine by-products are created by the combination of chlorine and organic wastes. These include aldehydes, chloroform, chloramines, and nitrogen trichloride.

One can use bromine tablets as another type of swimming pool chemical in addition to constantly and closely monitoring the pool’s chlorine concentration.

Now you know that if you or anyone you know begin to experience shortness of breath during swimming, getting out of the pool is the best choice. Try to find a spot where you can breathe in fresh air then go for a refreshing shower to wash your body of any chlorine by-product.